Sunday, December 21, 2014

4 Things The Campo Taught Me

4 lessons learned in
the campo

1.Poverty

Before my Campo immersion, I saw people experiencing poverty
as individuals who had much less than me and were therefore unhappy or
unfulfilled. Living in the Campo completely changed my view of “the poor”. People
may be considered “poor” because they lack material things, but I found that
they are very rich in other aspects of their life. I felt that the people I met
in the Campo had much deeper relationships with their families and community. I
also felt that their faith was much stronger and richer than mine. It made me
think, who are "the poor"? Are they the people who lack material wealth? Or could
they actually be the people who lack relationships with others and
self-awareness?

2. Water

Since high school, I’ve heard many people talk about the
issues with access to water. Many times statistics are thrown at us about how
many people don’t have access to water. It was not until I was living with
people who have very limited access to water that this issue became something I
could start to understand. I had never thought about how necessary water is for
the daily function of a household. I found myself constantly worried about how
much water I was using. I would rarely wash my hands and sometimes avoided
brushing my teeth. It really hit home one day when my family asked me to bathe
in the river because of their severe lack of water for even drinking and
cooking.The people in the campo were
not even working for clean filtered and treated water; they simply just wanted
water. Suddenly the statistics I had heard for years had faces behind them, and
the shear greatness of the numbers now overwhelms me.

3. “Plastic Chair” Culture

Plastic patio-style chairs are everywhere in the Dominican
Republic. I did not realize the significance of the plastic chairs until living
with my family in the Campo. Wherever I went around in the campo, I would
always be offered a plastic chair to sit in. When people would come visit my
family’s house they were also immediately offered a chair. This was a culture I
was not used to, but I loved it. Unlike the culture in the United States, people
will rarely say more than a simple “hello” to an acquaintance or casual friend
and if they do, they ask how they are doing in a matter of 20 seconds. When people
greet each other in the campo they spend at least a few minutes to stop and talk.
People are much less concerned about time and instead value the relationships
with others much more.For me the
plastic chairs were symbolic of the people’s desire here to spend time
together. I hope to take this part of their culture back with me and implement
it in my life.

4. Unconditional Love

While living in the
Campo I experienced an incredible amount of unconditional love from my host family
and the community as a whole. From the moment we stepped out of they bus they
applauded and showered us with love. Despite the fact that we interrupted their
lives and invaded their homes, they constantly showed us love. They would
prepare us their favorite desserts or fruits. They wanted to teach us
everything they knew, whether it was digging, cutting fruits, cooking rice, milking
cows, or riding horses. They shared so much of their lives with us. I have
never been shown this kind of love from complete strangers. The campesinos gave
their whole-selves to us. They taught me that it is possible to show
unconditional love to anyone, even the people we do not know.